The work of certain musical artists occasionally transcend the initial audience and genre they were intended for. Waylon Jennings, best known as a cornerstone of country music’s “outlaw movement,” produced a body of work during his lifetime that encapsulated a certain place and time in American musical history.
The music Jennings composed, and the recordings he made, are now being re-contextualized from a female perspective. Songwriter and performer, Shannon McNally, has long-since admired the music of Jennings and envisioned looking at his music through a female lens which she’s done on her latest release, The Waylon Sessions (Compass Records). In fact, as we discuss, Shannon’s interpretations might make a listener question why it took so long for someone to come up with this concept in the first place.
Join us as we talk about Jennings and the impact his music has had on her, seeing his body of work from another context, and the making of her new album. Not just anyone could pull off a project performing Waylon’s music. You’ve got to be a great musician, sure. But you’ve also got to be a bit of an outlaw, too.
Evan Toth is a songwriter, professional musician, educator, radio host, avid record collector, and hi-fi aficionado. Toth hosts and produces The Evan Toth Show and TVD Radar on WFDU, 89.1 FM. Follow him at the usual social media places and visit his website.
